Stewardship

We would like to begin this new program year at St. Edmund’s Church with a sincere thank you for your generous financial support during a very challenging time. Your contributions made it possible to continue and enhance our various programs that we have come to value both for the Parish and for our parishioners.

Also, as we begin transition to autumn, we need to encourage you to continue your spirit of giving. We need to remember that as a parish, we are blessed in so many ways. Some are blessed materially, some perhaps more spiritually, but we all are particularly blessed to belong to a Church that is serving a mission that is changing people’s lives and the world in which they live.

At St. Edmund’s, we talk much about stewardship. It comes from the word “steward,” an old English term for someone who managed another’s property, finances or other affairs. We believe God calls us to be good stewards of what we’ve been given, no matter how little or how large.

Our values are often reflected in our checkbooks. Matthew tells us that, “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” Many who receive this letter have faithfully pledged for a number of years, and will again this year. Again, we thank you. If you have not pledged in the past, we only ask you that you pray and fully consider doing so now, in whatever amount you can. For that, we also sincerely thank you.

As you know, our valued programs are run on tight budgets and many of the people responsible for implementing them are either unpaid or underpaid. We are also a growing parish and will be striving this year to devote the resources necessary to continue that growth. That means that we cannot continue to depend entirely on the beneficence and sacrifices of those responsible for implementing our programs as in years past.

Our current plans include increasing our programs for children and youth, and adding small stipends for currently unpaid clergy. We also need funds to continue to maintain the buildings and grounds in the way to which we have become accustomed. These are modest goals, but we believe that they are realistic and optimistic in the economy we face. In order to reach these goals and sustain our parish life, we will need to receive pledge commitments of $520,000.00